During Russia’s surreptitious invasion of Crimea, much was made of the “little green men,” soldiers without insignia who turned out to be Russian regulars.
On Monday, there was a new green man — albeit one of a decidedly different political hue — the opposition leader Alexei Navalny, who was doused with a bright green liquid in the Siberian city of Barnaul by an unknown assailant who had pretended to shake his hand.
Navalny wrote on his Facebook page that he initially feared an acid attack after feeling a burning sensation.
Photo: AP
However, relief appears to have given way to exaltation after he realized that the bright green liquid not only would not harm him, but even made him look like a superhero — in his eyes, anyway. He can be seen mugging for the camera in a selfie taken after the fact.
Referring to masked heroes in Hollywood films in a post on Twitter, he wrote: “I will be opening a headquarters in Barnaul as if I am from the film The Mask! Cool. Even my teeth are green!”
Navalny, a charismatic critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin, was a major driver of large street protests in 2011, 2012 and 2013, and has irked the Kremlin by shining a light on corruption.
His bid to run for president of Russia was effectively derailed last month, when a Russian court revived a four-year-old criminal conviction for defrauding a state company.
However, he has continued to campaign, with his supporters saying the charges against him are politically motivated.
It turns out that being attacked with green substances is something of an occupational hazard for outspoken opponents of Putin.
Late last month, Mikhail Kasyanov, another Putin critic, was spattered with green paint at a march in memory of the politician Boris Nemtsov, who was shot and killed on a Moscow bridge two years ago.
After the Siberia incident, several Navalny supporters showed solidarity by painting their faces green and posting on Twitter (“Alexei, Kazan headquarters is with you! We support!”), and one prominent blogger was detained after being seen on Red Square with his face and hands painted green.
Undeterred by the paint, Navalny suggested that his new look would help him stand out at rallies. Perhaps he was thinking of Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II, who wears pastel outfits and colorful hats to help onlookers spot her in a crowd.
“This strange assumption of the Kremlin: to pour brilliant green on me so that I don’t travel around the country and call rallies,” he wrote on Facebook. “It’s way cooler that way. Barnaul and Biysk volunteers (where we are opening two campaign headquarters these days) will get the most stylish selfies ever, and I’ll be the star of any rally.”
However, he did seem concerned about his new green teeth.
“Lemon won’t help you remove brilliant green,” he wrote. “Formic acid is way better. But I’ll remain light-green for quite some time. What worries me is my teeth. They are also green so far, but I hope they’ll discolor.”
Whatever his new appearance, he showed little sign of backing down.
“Our plans don’t change,” he wrote on Facebook. “On 26th, turn out for rallies.”
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